Hyuga Kawa snapped back to reality, a hint of apology on his face. "My apologies, Lord Hizashi, I thought it was..."
"You shouldn't be apologizing; I'm the one who came uninvited."
Hyuga Hizashi, dressed in a black kimono, waved his hand, not minding Hyuga Kawa's actions. He hid his slightly trembling hand behind his back, a hint of admiration in his eyes as he looked at Hyuga Kawa. He smiled, "May I come in and sit for a while?"
"Please, come in." Hyuga Kawa readily agreed, smiling and stepping aside.
"Excuse the intrusion." Hyuga Hizashi entered the genkan, his gaze sweeping over the simple, empty interior of the house, briefly pausing on another open room where training equipment was stored.
"I already know what happened this morning. It was right for you to act cautiously when someone infiltrated the compound."
The two sat down in the living room. Hyuga Hizashi sighed, speaking first. "It's just, I didn't expect someone to dare attack you within the village. How's your injury?"
Noticing Hizashi's gaze on his palm, Hyuga Kawa smiled. "Good luck, it's nothing serious now."
"It's just the two of us here, no need to be so formal in private," Hizashi nodded. "Your father and I had a very good relationship. I've been negligent towards you, and I'm relieved to see you're alright."
Speaking of which, this nominal head of the Branch Family actually had quite a good reputation among the branch members. For instance, his current attitude towards Hyuga Kawa was very gentle, more like an elder than a clan head.
Hyuga Hizashi inquired about Hyuga Kawa's recent situation, but in the middle of their conversation, he suddenly paused.
After a moment of hesitation, he didn't scold Hyuga Kawa for his transgression at noon, as the Main Branch elders had instructed. Looking at Hyuga Kawa's young face, and thinking of his deceased father, and then Neji's current attitude towards the Main Branch, he couldn't help but sigh inwardly.
With such vile actions and attitudes from the Main Branch, how could one not harbor resentment? All he could do was try to appease them.
"Those broken wooden stakes outside were shattered by you, weren't they?" Hyuga Hizashi changed the subject, remarking, "I didn't expect you to have made such great progress, and even to have activated your Byakugan as a blessing in disguise. But you should also be careful with the intensity, don't hurt yourself."
"Lord Hizashi flatters me," Hyuga Kawa remained polite but didn't echo the other's words. Instead, he said calmly, "After all, from now on, I'm alone. I can only rely on myself."
Hearing this, Hyuga Hizashi was stunned. Immediately, guilt and regret surged within him again. Seeing Hyuga Kawa's outwardly calm but inwardly sorrowful demeanor, Hyuga Hizashi felt the questions he wanted to ask become unaskable.
What would he ask? Would he ask why he, who was once clearly a waste, suddenly became so strong? Was there even a need to ask? The death of his only family member, his father, was enough to change a timid child.
"..."
Hyuga Hizashi instinctively licked his dry lips, only then remembering that the child hadn't even prepared tea. Ultimately, there was still some resentment in his heart. He could only try to soothe it.
"Alright, if you ever have any difficulties in the future, you can come to me," Hyuga Hizashi stood up. "I'll be heading back now. You must be tired too, get some rest early." He didn't rush to leave. Instead, he took out two scrolls from his kimono and placed them on the coffee table, saying gently, "Since you've already activated your Byakugan, you should have mastered the Eighty-Trigrams Thirty-Two Palms. These are the advanced Eighty-Trigrams Sixty-Four Palms and Eighty-Trigrams One Hundred Twenty-Eight Palms."
Looking at the scrolls placed before him, Hyuga Kawa's eyes flickered slightly, knowing that out of guilt and pity, the other party had truly made a momentary impulsive sacrifice.
The Hyuga Main Branch both desired the branch family members to be strong, so they could better protect them, yet also didn't want them to be too strong.
Besides the Eight Trigrams Palms Revolving Heaven, a secret technique passed down orally within the Hyuga Main Branch, the Eighty-Trigrams One Hundred Twenty-Eight Palms, as the pinnacle of Gentle Fist, was also one of the secret arts that required the Main Branch's permission for branch family members to learn.
While it held little significance against Kage-level opponents, the Eighty-Trigrams One Hundred Twenty-Eight Palms was a powerful technique when fighting most Jonin at close quarters.
At best, it caused slow or blocked chakra circulation; at worst, it rendered one unable to use ninjutsu, leaving them to die. Only branch family members who diligently protected the Main Branch and showed loyalty and obedience were likely to be allowed to learn this technique.
The moment Hizashi took out these two scrolls, he actually felt some regret. But before he could say anything, Hyuga Kawa had already picked up the two scrolls.
"Thank you," Hyuga Kawa said, head bowed, his face shrouded in shadow, his shoulders trembling slightly. "My father's ninjutsu scrolls and notes were all taken away. If it weren't for you, I truly wouldn't know what to do next."
"..."
Hearing this, Hyuga Hizashi closed his slightly open, hesitant mouth. After a moment of silence, he could only sigh. "Don't resent the Main Branch; this is our fate as the Branch Family. Your father wouldn't want to see you in such pain."
With that, worried that he might regret it again and ask for them back, Hizashi truly took his leave this time.
Hyuga Kawa remained seated in the living room, his sorrowful expression gradually turning calm as he looked up at the increasingly deep night sky outside the window.
[Ding! Your lie has been judged as [Feigned Piety] [Stirring Trouble]. Hyuga Hizashi has experienced strong emotional fluctuations, reaching the level of [Self-Doubt]. You have gained 300 Realization Points.]
[Remaining Realization Points: 11093]
"Today's harvest was quite fruitful," Hyuga Kawa remarked, looking at his points. "If only more good people like Lord Hizashi and Guy-senpai would come along." However, seeing his points becoming more abundant, he felt a little restless. To be safe, he'd keep 10,000 points as a backup. A little over 1,000 points would be enough for him to cause some trouble.
The first person Hyuga Kawa thought of was, naturally, his most beloved Orochimaru.
"It seems Orochimaru's scrolls can be tampered with." For him, Orochimaru was an experimental subject, a very useful one. And Hyuga Kawa currently had a very bold idea.
He pondered for a moment, then silently chanted in his mind: "Materialize - add subsequent content to Orochimaru's scrolls, set it so that the seal can only be broken and read by mastering the Impure World Reincarnation, and the content is that the souls of ninjas who die with deep resentment will materialize..."
Hyuga Kawa roughly described his requirements and quickly received a response.
[Spend 100 Realization Points, proceed with materialization?]
Since it was just materializing some text and a simple seal, the points required were not many.
"Materialize," Hyuga Kawa replied. After confirming the materialization was complete, his eyes flickered slightly, and he thought of Hyuga Neji, whom he had seen today. Orochimaru was still too far away; it would take time to see results. He couldn't just idly wait; he could start with others, and Hyuga Neji was a good choice.
After a moment of thought, Hyuga Kawa silently chanted: "Materialize - clothing that can conceal identity, block Byakugan peering and other perceptions, and is indestructible."
[Spend 800 Realization Points, proceed with materialization?]
"So dark," his face darkened, but he still replied, "Yes."
[Deducting 800 Realization Points, Remaining Realization Points: 10193]
As the system's response echoed in his mind, Hyuga Kawa was waiting for the physical item to appear when he suddenly saw his own shadow change. Black fluid surged from the shadow beneath his feet, crawling like liquid up his ankles, then gradually covering his entire body. Hyuga Kawa looked up at himself in the mirror.
He was wearing a hooded black robe. The hem of the black robe swirled and flowed, not like fabric but like a living thing, and his face was shrouded in bottomless shadow.
[Shadow Robe: A black robe transformed from shadow. Regardless of the wearer's physique, it can change its shape as needed. It can perfectly conceal identity, interfere with most peering and perception, automatically repairs itself like a liquid if damaged, and usually hides within shadows (Bound).]
At this moment, Hyuga Kawa had only one thought.
These 800 Realization Points were worth it.